2pm on the 15th, at the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall. 56 orchestra members dressed in black suits are standing on stage. Many of the members are looking around and cannot concentrate. But when the conductor waves his hand, they grab their instruments and focuse on the baton. The scattered stage changes to a calm atmosphere as they play Elgar 's Pomp and Circumstance March.

The Heart to Heart Orchestra, an ensemble consisted of youths with developmental disabilities, has entered the Seoul Arts Center Concert Hall. The members played for an hour and a half at the "Heart to Heart Concert for the Improvement of Disability Awareness" organized by the Heart to Heart Foundation and the Arts Center. It is the first time that a handicapped ensemble has performed exclusively in the Seoul Arts Center. The Heart to Heart Orchestra is made up of 12-30 year olds with developmental disabilities. The orchestra, which started in 2006 with six members, grew nearly 10 times in seven years. They are recognized for their ability to perform, even participating at the opening ceremony of the Pyeongchang Special Olympics in February.

It is not easy for people with developmental disabilities who have less concentration than regular people to carry out 90 minutes of classical performance. At today's performance too, some members showed abrupt actions, such as suddenly twisting their body left to right while they were waiting and raising their thumbs toward the audience.

But at the moment of playing, they showed concentration and talent that is no different from regular orchestras. The orchestra performed 10 songs including Sibelius's "Finlandia" and the theme song from the movie "Forrest Gump". When Dong-kyun Kim(21, autism class 2) and Young-soo Lee(26, intellectual disability class 2), who are studying at Korea National University of Arts, played Cesar Frank's "Panis Angelicus", the audience broke into applause.

Baritone Dong-gyu Kim(47) sang Bizet's "Toreador song" with the accompaniment of the orchestra. Kim said, "The members engraved the music into their bodies through numerous hours of vigorous practice. The are angels that made the impossible possible."

　

For the Heart to Heart orchestra members, the Seoul Arts Center was a dream stage. The stage of the Seoul Arts Center, which is not easy for even regular musicians to borrow, seemed like an unconquerable wall to them. However, there was a chance for them to participate as a guest at "Together in Harmony", a performance held to wish for the success of the Pyeongchang Winter Special Olympics, held at the Seoul Arts Center last October. Hee-eun Kim, director of the Heart to Heart Orchestra, said, "The Seoul Arts Center, which had watched the performances of the members closely at that time, proposed this stage. It is a fruitful result of the 20 and more past performances we had, both in Korea and abroad."

On this day, 1,500 of the 2500 seats were paid seats. Hee-eun Kim said, "Most concerts by the disabled are free, but we promoted charging in order to change the perception about performances by disabled people, and to set up a basis for the financial independence of the members." The rest of the 1,000 seats were for children from the disadvantaged and with developmental disabilities who were invited from across the country.

Sun-ja Jeon(41), mother of orchestra member Yong-yeon Yoon(16, Intellectual Disability Level 1), said, "I am so proud of that my son has stood at the Seoul Arts Center Concert hall, which is a dream stage for musicians. I hope this concert will be a chance for the awareness of the public to improve."